Unfunded Mandate Initiative (78th Legislature)

Compilation of Unfunded and Under-funded State Mandates  

Overview
The Subcommittee on Unfunded Mandates of the Policy Analysis Group (PAG) recently supported action regarding counties' need for a constitutional amendment to prohibit unfunded mandates by the state. Unfunded mandates impose costs on Texas counties and their taxpayers exceeding millions of dollars statewide and can force counties to increase property tax rates to pay for unfunded or under-funded directives passed by the state.

Subcommittee members are seeking the assistance of all county officials in Texas to support the proposed amendment leading up to and during the 79th legislative session in 2005.

First, the members request that counties pass resolutions supporting the unfunded mandate amendment and issue news releases explaining and supporting the amendment. Resolutions passed by commissioners courts should be faxed to (512) 478-3573.

Second, the subcommittee members will seek placement of a non-binding referendum on both the Republican and Democratic primary ballots on March 9, 2004. The referendum will demonstrate voter support of the constitutional amendment.

Third, the subcommittee members urge all county officials to raise public awareness regarding the problem of unfunded mandates, including contacting their local news media and community leaders.

Subcommittee members are Brazoria County Commissioner Jack Harris, subcommittee chairman; Dallas County Commissioner Jim Jackson; Fort Bend County Tax Assessor-Collector Marsha Gaines; Bee County Tax Assessor-Collector Andrea Gibbud; Bell County District Attorney Henry Garza; and Wichita County Auditor Deborah Stevens.

The members have requested that documents relating to unfunded mandates be distributed to all county officials. Pursuant to their request, the documents are now available on the TAC Web site.

The informational package includes:

• a resolution for consideration by county commissioners courts;
• a news release for local media;
• examples of newspaper editorial comments on the issue;
• a proposed referendum for the Republican and Democratic primary elections on March 9, 2004;
• general talking points;
• examples of unfunded mandates stemming from the 78th Legislature;
• examples of unfunded mandates stemming from previous sessions of the Legislature.

County officials may copy the enclosed documents or download them from the Web to use as needed. If you need additional information, contact the TAC Legislative Department at 1-800-456-5974.

Articles
The articles below have been provided to you in two different formats for optimal viewing and printing purposes; Rich Text Format (RTF) and Portable Document Format (PDF).

	RTF	PDF
Precinct Convention Resolution
County Resolution
Local County Official Seeks To Protect Taxpayers From Unfunded Mandates
A Sampling of Reports & Editorial Columns From Texas Newspapers
Primary Referendum
Unfunded Mandates General Talking Points
Unfunded Mandates from the 78th Legislative Session
Examples of Unfunded Mandates from the Past Legislative Sessions